


The Book

by RodeRozen



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Scars, The Marauder's Map, inspired by The Phantom of the Opera
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-09
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2020-02-29 03:45:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18770518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RodeRozen/pseuds/RodeRozen
Summary: No one knows who the owner of The Book that's been laying around Gryffindor Tower is. The Marauders try to find out, and things...escalate.





	The Book

The Book had been laying around Gryffindor tower for a month or so now. The older Gryffindors had turned it into a game to guess who it belonged to.  
No one had had much luck yet.  
James walked by the fireplace. It was Friday evening, and he’d just been forcibly removed from the Great Hall by the Head Girl.  
He snorted as he saw The Book resting on the coffee table, a red ribbon marking the mysterious owner’s place. Had he not seen it so many times over the past weeks, James probably would have blushed at what was on the cover.  
As it was, he merely turned it around so that the scandalous image was no longer visible. Honestly, the firsties did not need their minds corrupted that way.  
When he found its owner, they’d be in detention until the Easter Holidays at the very least.  
Firsties saved from corruption, James walked on, not noticing that the red ribbon had slipped out from between the pages of The Book.

\---MWPP---

A few minutes later, the three remaining Marauders entered.  
“-new theory is that they’re just taking the mickey out of us!” Sirius explained, gesturing wildly with his arms, accidentally hitting the person walking next to him.  
“Ouch! Watch the elbows, Pads,” said Remus, rubbing his injured eye.  
Either not caring or not listening, Sirius continued talking:  
“So I don’t get why Prongs ran off! He’s just as curious as we are!”  
“Maybe The Book is his and he’s just embarrassed,” suggested Peter, dodging Sirius’s left arm and spilling the goblet of pumpkin juice he held over himself in the process.  
“Padfoot,” growled Remus, leaning down and grabbing Sirius by the collar, “if you don’t stop that right now, I will Petrify you. Also, if you remember, James didn’t run away. Lily kicked him out.”  
Sirius sheepishly scratched the back of his neck.  
“Oh. Yeah.”  
They walked up to their dorm, where a startling sight met them.  
“JAMES POTTER! YOU OPEN THAT DOOR RIGHT NOW!” Lily was yelling at the door to their dorm, flushed and out of breath.  
“Um, Lily?” asked Remus, approaching her cautiously.  
“What?!” snapped Lily, whirling around. He held his hands up, gesturing to Sirius with his chin.  
Sirius stepped past them, placing his hand on the door and whispering the password.  
The door swung open, and Lily darted through it, the three boys hot on her heels.  
James cringed away from a frightening Lily, who looked as if she’d gladly bash his head in with the nearest heavy object.  
“Does anyone know what I fucked up this time?” James whimpered, protecting his crotch with his hands, clearly remembering the last time Lily had been this angry. Remus grinned as he remembered Lily’s demonstration of just how well she could do a shrinking charm.  
“James, mate,” Sirius carefully said, “you do remember what we- um, you, did to the Great Hall?”  
“It was just for fun!” protested James. “Besides, it wasn’t even my idea!”  
“Whose was it, then?” asked Lily, a steel glint in her eyes.  
Remus sheepishly raised a hand.  
“It may or may not have been mine?”  
Peter mourned the imminent dead of his friend for a second, before realizing he was missing some good entertainment.  
“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t put you in detention until the end of the year?” Lily’s eyes flashed. “Honestly, there were first years present!”  
“Well, then they have been relieved of their innocence,” said Sirius, puffing his chest up proudly.  
“Black,” sighed Lily. “You too? I should have known.”  
“It was you two?!” James incredulously said. “My eyes are scarred for life!”  
Lily rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips.  
“Do you expect me to believe for one second that you don’t have more hands-on experience than that?”  
James flushed bright red. Sirius burst out laughing, and Remus tried unsuccessfully to hide his snickers.  
“You don’t?” Lily breathed, stunned.  
James glared at her.  
“I’ve been in love with you since fourth year. I was hardly going to shag some other bird!”  
Remus started moving toward the door, hoping Lily would be too caught up in the moment to notice.  
“We’ll talk later, Potter,” snapped Lily. “LUPIN! Where do you think you’re going?”  
Remus froze, tiptoeing back to his previous spot.  
“For that matter,” Lily continued, “where in the world is Pettigrew?”  
“Here!” called Peter from the doorway, walking in with The Book held under his arm. “I thought I’d remove this from the common room.”  
“…and why did you bring it here?” questioned Sirius, gaping at Peter.  
“Um, because it’s Lily’s?”  
“WHAT?!” James, Remus and Sirius yelled, before looking at Lily, who was blushing.  
“How did you know?” she asked.  
“Your name is on your bookmark,” said Peter, fishing the ribbon out of his pocket and handing it over along with the book. “It fell out.”  
“Wait. Lily. Book. Gay. Book. Lily. Hot. Firsties. Lily. Book.”  
Remus, who’d recovered somewhat, shot James an amused glance.  
“I think you’ve broken him, Lily.”  
An evil glint appeared in Lily’s eye.  
“Uh oh,” whispered Sirius.  
“You know what?” said Lily. “Since the two of you thought it was oh so hilarious to write an EXPLICIT SEX SCENE on the walls of the Great Hall, why don’t you act it out? See how funny it is then.”  
“WHAT?!” Remus and Sirius yelled, looking at each other in horror. Remus held his hands up.  
“No, no no. That’s just…”  
“Can’t they act out the scene before it?” Peter piped up. “That’s still punishment, but it won’t scar us for life.”  
“You read it?” James incredulously asked.  
“No,” said Peter, scowling. “Those two morons were discussing, very loudly, which part of the chapter they should use for their stunt. At three in the morning, might I add!”  
“That still doesn’t mean-” Sirius tried to protest.  
“Mate, I will put that meat-intolerance hex we found last week on you if you don’t.”  
Sirius shot James an unamused look.  
“Fine.”  
Everyone looked at Remus, who paled, holding up his hands.  
“No way!”  
“Yes way,” said Lily.  
Remus shot a glance at James, silently pleading for help.  
“Remus.”  
Ah, fuck. Why did he confide in Lily again?  
“Fine,” he said in defeat. Lily raised her hand to high-five James, who floundered just a tad too long, resulting in a hand colliding with his nose.  
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Lily exclaimed, blushing. Sirius looked at Remus, who knew he was in for a late-night matchmaking brainstorm.  
“Are you two going to get on with it or what?” asked Peter around the chocolate frog in his mouth.  
“Is that a frog from my stash, Wormtail?” asked Remus, hands on his hips.  
Peter squeaked.  
“Maybe?”  
Remus’s glare intensified.  
“Come on, Moony,” said Sirius, placing a hand on Remus’s shoulder, before leaning over to whisper in his ear. “Just charm his sugar quills later.”  
Remus took a deep breath before turning around.  
“Okay, Lily. How much time do we get to learn our lines?”  
Lily and James looked at each other.  
“A day.”  
“A week.”  
“What?” said Lily. “That’s way too much time!”  
“Besides, Prongs,” Peter said, “they can use that learning charm we found for the exams last year!”  
James cringed.  
“WHAT?” shrieked Lily. “I should report you right now!”  
“Lils-”  
“Don’t you Lils me, James Potter!” She got a thoughtful look on her face. “But I’ll let you get away with it if Remus and Sirius act out that scene tomorrow before noon.”  
“But then I won’t be able to be there!” whined Peter. “I have detention for the whole day!”  
Everyone ignored him.  
“Deal,” said James.  
Remus looked at Sirius, who very pointedly avoided his gaze.  
He was so dead.

\---MWPP---

Lily looked around the Room of Requirement appreciatively. James had shown it to her, and she’d managed to turn it into an exact copy of the setting for the scene Remus and Sirius would be acting out.  
In the upper right corner of the room stood a king-size bed with black sheets. She almost blushed as she imagined what took place on it in the book. In the other upper corner, the Room’s door had been recolored into an intimidating black. Against the wall opposite the door stood the dressing table with the mirror. There were candles everywhere, still burning for now.  
Not that they’d need them to see. Lily had put a charm on her and James’s eyes so that they’d be able to see. James had insisted Remus – for whatever reason, she’d get to the bottom of that later – didn’t need the charm, and Sirius didn’t need to see anyway. It would help him feel more in character.  
Sirius would play Chris, and Remus was going to play Eric. She and James were the audience, sitting on the side of the bed that wouldn’t be needed for the play.  
A knock sounded at the door. James entered, dragging Sirius behind him.  
“Honestly! Why can’t I have a little more clothes?!”  
Lily snickered.  
“Because, Sirius, that is what your character is wearing! Now, get in position.”  
Sirius sat in front of the mirror, face lighting up at all the beauty products standing on the dressing table.  
“They’re just empty boxes, Pads!” called out James.  
Sirius pouted. Lily rolled her eyes, pulling James over to sit next to her.  
“I’m counting down!” called Lily, loud enough that Remus, who was waiting outside the door, would be able to hear her. “Three…two…one. Start!”  
As soon as she gave the signal, Sirius grabbed a razor and some shaving cream and started shaving his face. When he was about halfway done, all the candles were blown out by a gust of wind that Lily conjured. He stiffened as the door swung open. She could see Remus approaching from behind Sirius.  
“Who- who’s there?” asked Sirius, just the right amount of fear in his voice.  
Remus furrowed his brow, face tormented. He didn’t respond, but continued to approach Sirius, who had stilled completely.  
“Phantom, is that you?” Sirius called out longingly, looking like he was trying not to laugh. He then made an attempt to turn around, but was stopped by Remus, who placed his hands on Sirius’s hips. Looking at Remus’s white knuckles, Lily deduced Sirius would have bruises tomorrow.  
“Please say something,” Sirius said softly, a barely audible snicker in his voice.  
Remus still didn’t reply. Sirius again tried to turn around, but Remus stopped him, this time by taking another step closer so that they were flush against each other. Lily rejoiced at the blush that colored both their faces.  
“Don’t, my angel,” said Remus hoarsely. Sirius sighed, leaning back against Remus, who tightened his grip.  
Sirius winced.  
“You’re hurting me,” he said in a feeble voice.  
Remus stepped back, saying:  
“Excuse me.” He then walked back toward the door, allowing Lily and James to look at the black mask covering his face. It seemed uncannily right on him.  
Just before he would have exited the room, Remus paused, leaning forward and bracing himself against the wall. By now, Sirius had gotten up, uncertainly walking toward Remus. He raised a hand to place it on Remus’s shoulder, but hesitated, letting it drop again.  
“Please don’t go,” he said.  
Remus let his hands fall back to his sides, standing up straight with his back still to Sirius.  
“I should not be here,” he said, voice tormented.  
“Why?” asked Sirius, his own trademark whine clearly present. Lily grinned; they were made for these roles.  
Remus whirled around, which made Sirius draw back in fear. Before he could actually step backwards, though, Remus grabbed his shoulders roughly, snarling:  
“Look at me!”  
“I can’t see anything, Phantom. There isn’t enough light.” Sirius rubbed his shoulders, the light in his eyes, making Lily feel like she was watching an intimate moment instead of a play, as did the hurt on Remus’s face when he said:  
“I hurt you, did I not?” With the anguish on his face clearly visible, she wondered how much of it was real.  
Remus turned away and walked to the door, determination in every step.  
Sirius hesitated, before calling out:  
“Wait!”  
Remus stopped walking, one hand on the doorknob.  
“It’s not your fault,” said Sirius gently, almost lovingly. Lily could see the pain on Remus’s face as he said:  
“Yes it is. I should have left you alone!” She truly wondered if they even realized they were still acting.  
Sirius walked up to Remus, who spun around to face him.  
“I’m glad you didn’t.”  
“Are you? I’m a monster, Angel,” answered Remus, a very real pain in his voice. Lily was starting to regret this punishment.  
Sirius wrapped his arms around Remus, resting his head on his chest and looking all too relieved to be able to give comfort.  
“You’re anything but a monster.” At the softly spoken words, Lily swore she saw a tear run down Remus’s cheek.  
“You only say that because you have not seen me- uh, my face.” She raised her eyebrows at the slight deviation from the script.  
“You didn’t tell me it was this kind of story!” hissed James next to her, barely constrained fury in her voice. She looked at him questioningly, but he looked away, jaw clenched.  
They were brought back by the present by Sirius saying:  
“It won’t change anything, hell, it didn’t change anything.”  
Lily coughed lightly. Improvised lines were not part of the plan.  
Sirius seemed to force himself back into his role as he trailed a hand along Remus’s jaw, stepping back and whispering:  
“I promise.”  
Remus raised a hand, making Sirius – even though it wasn’t in the script – flinch. He recovered quickly, though, as Remus took his hand and held on to it. He took a deep breath and said:  
“Light the candles, Angel.” He then went to sit on the bed while Sirius walked around the room lighting every candle, sending Lily a scorching glare as he passed her.  
Light slowly filled the room, revealing Remus’s mask to Sirius.  
An oppressive silence filled the room as Remus slowly took his mask off, fingers trembling and eyes closed.  
All three of them audibly gasped upon seeing three red, raw scratches across Remus’s face. Sirius immediately rushed forward. Lily didn’t find it in her to correct him – she assumed Remus hadn’t mauled himself just for the play.  
“Oh, Moony,” said Sirius, something undefinable filling his voice. “Why didn’t you tell us?”  
They clearly weren’t acting anymore, as Remus laid his head on Sirius’s shoulder and mumbled:  
“I didn’t want you to see.”  
Lily tried to cough, but was stopped by James placing a hand over her mouth. She glared at him.  
Sirius drew Remus into his arms, whispering silent words of reassurance to him that she couldn’t understand.  
After a few minutes, Remus drew back, smiling tremulously. As if on impulse, Sirius leaned in, kissing him.  
Not quite together, Lily and James gasped, causing them to pull apart and stare at each other in horror.  
Before anyone could comprehend what had happened, Sirius was gone, only an open door remaining, while Remus’s breathing kept speeding up.  
“Who’s going after Sirius?” asked Lily.  
“You are,” James said firmly, pushing her away from the bed. His eyes held something she couldn’t identify. Somehow, she felt like she’d fucked up, big time, but she had no idea what she’d done.  
She left the room in search of one idiot Black.

\---MWPP---

As soon as Lily was out the door, Remus buried his face in his hands. He noticed James scoot over.  
“Are you okay, Moony? I’m sorry I didn’t read the script before pushing you into this.”  
“Technically, Lily pushed me into this.”  
James chuckled uncomfortably, scratching the back of his neck.  
“Yeah…what was she talking about, anyway?”  
“I told her something I shouldn’t have, and she held it above my head.” Remus felt the smallest hint of amber enter his eyes.  
James went pale.  
“Is there a need for plan F?”  
“No, my furry little secret is safe.” Remus paused. “It was something else.”  
“Let me guess, you’re in love with Sirius?”  
“Um, well.”  
Neither said anything.  
”How’d you know?”  
“I noticed…stuff,” said James awkwardly.  
Remus didn’t ask what ‘stuff’ meant. He was sure he didn’t want to know.  
“So, that’s what you told her.”  
“Yeah.”  
James looked at Remus. Their eyes met, before they quickly looked to the floor.  
“I’m awful at this, aren’t I,” sighed James, scuffing his foot.  
“Sort of.”  
“Why didn’t you tell us about…” James gestured to his face. “That.”  
“I just wanted to practice my glamour charms.”  
James shot a Look Remus’s way.  
“I don’t know, okay! I just didn’t want you to see.” Remus stood up and threw his hands in the air in frustration.  
“I’d say something mushy and comforting, but I think Sirius already did.”  
Remus sat back down.  
“Yeah, he did.”  
“He also told you that you are NOT a monster?”  
“He did.”  
“Good.”  
Right at that moment, the door swung open. Lily entered, towing a Stunned Sirius behind her.  
“Evans!” yelled Remus and James at the same time.  
Lily paled.  
“In my defence, he was placing a Fidelius over the classrooms.”  
“You should’ve let him,” said James, but his face had softened considerably. “We still need to talk.”  
Lily started to say something, but was interrupted by Remus hissing in James’s ear:  
“You’re not going to tell her about my ‘rabbit’, are you?”  
“Of course not!” said James, looking scandalized, before speaking in a near-silent voice. “I just want to see how much she suspects, and give her an earful about what she did to you two.”  
Remus sighed in relief, nodding his acquiescence.  
James left, a worried-looking Lily behind him.  
Remus turned around to find Sirius, still unconscious, on the floor.  
“Ennervate,” said Remus quietly, pointing his wand at Sirius, who almost immediately sat up, rubbing at his temples.  
“I swear, the next time I see Evans- oh. Hey, Moony.”  
Remus had to grin despite himself.  
“Hey, Pads.”  
He sat down on the floor, just far enough from Sirius that they weren’t touching.  
“So.”  
“So.”  
“I guess we’ve got a lot to talk about,” said Remus, fiddling with his tie.  
“It’s quite simple, I think.” Sirius grinned crookedly, moving so he was on one knee. “Remus John Lupin, will you be my boyfriend?”  
Remus nearly fainted with relief at realizing Sirius was not, in fact, intending to propose to him.  
“I would be delighted, Padfoot,” he answered, leaning forward so he could kiss his newly-acquired boyfriend.

\---MWPP---

After he was done yelling at his future bride, James hurried back to the Room of Requirement. He opened the door…and promptly closed it again.  
“Oi!” he called, hitting the wood. “Put your trousers back on!”  
A passing firstie gave him a worried look. He stuck his tongue out at her.  
The door swung open, revealing a tousled-looking Remus.  
“Wipe those smug grins of your faces, mutts,” scolded James fondly, worry creasing his brow. “We’ve got a problem.”  
Remus quickly pulled him inside, spelling the door shut with a number of charms James didn’t even recognize.  
“She doesn’t know, does she?” Sirius spoke up from where he was lying on the bed looking thoroughly debauched, running a hand through his hair.  
“After the next full moon she will,” said James gravely.  
“Obliviate her?” suggested Sirius, still lying on the bead eagle-style.  
“Pads, sit up, please. And no, I was actually hoping we could tell her the truth.” James turned pleading eyes on Remus.  
“What if she tells someone?” Remus asked warily.  
“Ah, but that is where my masterplan comes into play!”  
“Get on with it, Prongs,” said Sirius, faking a yawn.  
“I thought we could try and get a Marauder’s Vow out of her.”  
“That’s…brilliant,” Remus admitted. “If we play it right, it should work.”  
James nodded.  
“I hate manipulating her like that, but keeping our secret comes first.”  
Remus smiled, pleased to have such good friends. He then threw a pillow at Sirius.  
“Get up, you mongrel! We have a maiden to shock!”

\---MWPP---

They eventually found Lily in the Astronomy tower, studying lunar charts. Remus paled at seeing an image of the full moon.  
James, noticing this, walked forward and slammed the book shut.  
“Hey! What was that for?” protested Lily.  
James stepped back again, but not before Vanishing the book.  
Sirius came forward.  
“We have a deal to make with you, Evans.”  
“What is it, Black?”  
Sirius winced, but squared his shoulders and went on.  
“We know you’re trying to figure out our secret.”  
“We’ll tell you,” James fell in.  
“But only if you make a Vow not to tell anyone else,” Remus finished.  
“Fine,” said Lily, “but I won’t make an Unbreakable Vow.”  
“You don’t have to.” James procured the Marauder’s map from inside his robes. “You only have to touch your wand to this parchment.”  
“Speak the words, ‘I solemnly swear to refrain from sharing the secret entrusted to me’,” Sirius continued.  
“And sign your name. Then you can release your wand,” Remus ended.  
“What will that do?” Lily asked suspiciously.  
“It won’t hurt you!” James reassured her quickly.  
“It’ll lock our secret inside of you. You will be physically unable to speak of it if anyone could overhear.” Remus explained.  
“You also won’t be able to write it down, sign it, or communicate it any other way. It can’t be forced out of you by any means, either.” Sirius added.  
Lily took a deep breath.  
“I’ll do it.”  
James held the parchment out to her. She placed her wand on it, holding it still while she said:  
“I solemnly swear to refrain from sharing the secret entrusted to me.”  
Then she signed her name. As soon as she lifted her wand, the parchment glowed a bright red.  
Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs wish to thank you for keeping our secret.  
“You made this?” asked Lily incredulously.  
“We did,” said James, gesturing to Remus, who put up numerous wards.  
“Clear, Prongs.”  
James turned into a stag. Lily barely had time to gasp before Sirius had changed into a large black dog.  
“Traitors,” growled Remus. “Leaving me to tell her!”  
The dog and the stag looked at him innocently.  
“You mean there’s more?!” Lily exclaimed.  
“Sort of, yeah.”  
“Don’t tell me you can turn into a lion?”  
“Not a lion, no,” said Remus awkwardly. He took a deep breath, before allowing Moony to come out slightly. He felt his eyes change color. He winced as his teeth lengthened into the fangs of a beast, opening his mouth and growling at Lily.  
She went deadly pale, backing up against the railing. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Prongs looking at him incredulously.  
“And James would like me to add that Peter can turn into a rat, too,” he said, eyes still glowing amber.  
Lily flattened herself against the railing. Before Remus could figure out what was wrong, James changed back, hitting him upside the head.  
“You’re scaring her, you dolt!”  
“Oh. Oops.” Sheepishly, he reined Moony back in. His eyes slowly receded back to their normal moss green, a bit darker than Lily’s. Trying not to grit his teeth as they reshaped, he clenched his fists, not noticing Lily following the movement with her eyes.  
“Okay,” he breathed as soon as the partial transformation was over. “Who thought it would be a good idea to give a demonstration, again?”  
Sirius changed back as well, raising a hand.  
James pinched the bridge of his nose.  
“Pads, that’s the last time we’re using your plan.”  
“Uh, guys?” Seeing that both boys were looking at him, Remus gestured to Lily. “I think she’s going into shock.”  
“Lily! Lils!” James called out, jumping up and down in front of her.  
She seemed to shake herself out of it slightly, face pale and drawn. Her hands were shaking in fear. Remus looked away, hoping he didn’t lose James his chance with Lily.  
“Werewolf?” she brought out, pointing a trembling finger at him. He flinched.  
“Yeah,” he quietly said. “I’m sorry for scaring you.”  
Feeling a sudden pressure on his waist, he whirled around, growling with his teeth bare.  
Sirius chuckled.  
“You idiot,” he fondly said, pulling his boyfriend closer to him. Moony, still not fully back under control, kept growling. The panic must have been visible in Remus’s eyes, because Sirius drew him into his arms, swaying gently back and forth.  
“Shh, Moons. I didn’t mean to startle you.”  
“Yes you did,” mumbled Remus. Sirius laughed.  
“Okay, so maybe I did.”  
Remus rolled his eyes, giving Sirius a shove.  
James coughed lightly, jerking his chin in Lily’s direction.  
“We might as well take her to the Hospital Wing. I don’t think we’re going to be able to snap her out of it.”

\---MWPP---

“Oh my, what did you three do to Miss Evans? She’s gone into shock!”  
Madam Pomfrey clucked, bustling around the hospital bed.  
“Here, dearie, drink this.”  
Lily reflexively swallowed the foul-tasting potion the matron fed her, almost spitting it back out. She heard Sirius mumble something barely audible.  
He’s a werewolf! she tried to say, but found that she couldn’t move her lips.  
James put up a privacy ward.  
“He’s a werewolf!” said Lily a little too loudly, opening her eyes and pointing at Remus, who flinched back.  
“Yes, I know,” said Madam Pomfrey. “Would I be right to guess you did not?”  
“Not until this afternoon!” she answered, a certain shrillness to her tone. “Why is he allowed in the school? Werewolves are dangerous!”  
Remus’s eyes – moss green, she registered – shone with hurt. She looked at James for support, but found his clenching the side of her bed as if trying not to lunge at her.  
Shrinking back slightly, she once again scanned the room, but none of the faces seemed sympathetic.  
“I think you’re ready to leave now, Miss Evans,” Madam Pomfrey told her, a chilly note in her voice.  
Saying nothing, she got up and walked away, her feet carrying her to the Whomping Willow without consulting her.  
She found the tree fascinating, and often came here to watch the way it’s branches moved. Sitting herself down on the grass, she sighed, mulling things over.  
So lost in thought, she didn’t notice a bunch of Slytherins walking toward her, Severus trailing behind her.  
“Well, well, well,” drawled Mulciber. “What have we here? Could it be a damsel in distress?”  
Avery leered at her.  
“Don’t you worry your pretty little head about it.” Turning to his cronies, he stage-whispered. “If she’s even capable of that much thought.”  
Lily said nothing, seeking out Severus at the back of the crowd. He looked away, not meeting her eyes.  
She cried out in pain when a Stinging Hex collided with her left breast, glaring at the culprit ferociously while she tried to reach her wand. Stupid, stupid, stupid. She shouldn’t have put it in her bag.  
“Accio Evans’s wand,” said Regulus Black, stepping forward. She looked at him sadly, having hoped against hope he’d have the chivalrous tendencies of his brother. Well, clearly not.  
“Levatra!” A shout came from behind. Suddenly, the ground the Slytherins were standing on was raised about ten meters, floating in the sky.  
“Lily!” called out her rescuer. “Are you alright?”  
“Fine,” she absently said, rubbing her injured breast. Taking another good look at the figure running at her from afar, she did a double take upon seeing it was Remus.  
“Bastards,” he mumbled as he came closer, extending a hand to help her up, raising his eyebrows when she quickly scooted backwards.  
“I can get up myself,” she frostily said.  
“Found out, did you!” Snape shouted from the floating piece of earth.  
“Silencio,” Remus drawled, lazily twirling his wand at the Slytherins. “Come on, I’m not going to hurt you.” He again extended his hand.  
Lily took it, giving him a tremulous smile.  
“I’m sorry,” she softly said.  
“It’s okay- oh, bugger.”  
“What is it?”  
Right then, she too noticed McGonagall briskly walking toward them, thunder in her eyes.  
Bugger, indeed.


End file.
